The child's play is influenced by their environment and their knowledge of the world.

The child's play is determined by their knowledge interacting with their personalities and preferences.

Children playing creates a community: consensus on rules and behaviour, rewarded with more play.

One of my favourite memories of Atilla (18months 2weeks): he's in daycare school. I'm watching him unobserved through a window in the hallway. he's having fun twisting his body and flinging his arms around him (like a top-loading washing machine). he twists, flings so hard - he spins! Big big wide smile. He does it again and smiles with Marvin, who is also twisting and flinging.

Chapter 6: Confronting Assumptions About Play.

This contained one of the more powerful messages for me.

As I understand it, play is exercising a pleasurable skill set. So, soccer players play, musicians play, chefs also play.

Play is not without constraint; in fact humans are very good at creating constraints to play within.

Childhood may or may not be innocent, but it does contain ignorance.

Purposeful witholding of age-appropriate information is tantamount to bullying, I feel. 'Set up to fail' tactic of asserting dominance.

One of my aims with Atilla: support him in his quest to gain knowledge about the world. Share my skill set, help him to learn.

[the first version was entirely more poetic and rambling, with quotes, links, and director's cut. this is just the bits scrounged from the editing room floor.]